Brand Obama seemed to be showing some leadership on green initiatives in his State of the Union address, pointing out a new high speed rail system in Florida.
"We can put Americans to work today building the infrastructure of tomorrow. From the first railroads to the interstate highway system, our nation has always been built to compete. There's no reason Europe or China should have the fastest trains or the new factories that manufacture clean energy products.
Tomorrow, I'll visit Tampa, Fla., where workers will soon break ground on a new high-speed railroad funded by the Recovery Act. There are projects like that all across this country that will create jobs and help our nation move goods, services and information. We should put more Americans to work building clean energy facilities and give rebates to Americans who make their homes more energy efficient, which supports clean energy jobs."
He went on to describe how he plans to put more funding into solar cell research--although he was cautious not to make any big promises--hardly an FDR-scale plan to convert the economy.
"No area is more ripe for such innovation than energy. You can see the results of last year's investment in clean energy — in the North Carolina company that will create 1,200 jobs nationwide helping to make advanced batteries, or in the California business that will put 1,000 people to work making solar panels."
Unfortunately, Obama's forward thinking on high speed rail, home energy retrofits and solar panels is not mirrored in the energy portfolio which sounds a lot like his predecessor:
"But to create more of these clean energy jobs, we need more production, more efficiency, more incentives. That means building a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in this country. It means making tough decisions about opening new offshore areas for oil and gas development. It means continued investment in advanced biofuels and clean coal technologies. And yes, it means passing a comprehensive energy and climate bill with incentives that will finally make clean energy the profitable kind of energy in America."
Obama's either getting some bad advice or not doing his homework on energy. Clean coal, as has been widely shown, is a nice idea but there's no such technology. Even his own regulators have argued that neither nuclear nor coal power may be necessary, if renewable energy and conservation is pursued aggressively. Some have argued that renewables can't supply sufficient power to meet our modern needs. But experts such as George Monbiot have shown, step by step, how a renewable future is possible (See his book, "Heat," for all the data.).
What's going on in Washington? Why, on the one hand, is the President talking about a green future and green jobs, while on the other he's drawing a road map to get there that depens on dirty, nonexistent, or dangerous technologies of yesteryear? Where's the call for massive efforts at conservation and reduced energy consumption? Apparently that kind of common sense doesn't play well to the out-of-touch millionaires in Congress who have been coopted by the lobbyists who pay their campaign bills. Maybe it's time for the president to take his case directly to the people.